Anand Bhatt's READY FOR THE RED CARPET Blog

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Celebrity Anand Bhatt brings us the inside scoop & behind-the-scenes on Everything from who's wearing what, the latest fashion and beauty trends, Inspiration on how celebs keep it together under stress, and more!

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Could Taxi Cabs Become a Thing of the Past?One thing that can't be denied, is that technology brought upon by the Internet seems to be taking over every single aspect of society. This new way of doing things is so ingrained into our society that imagining life without the World Wide Web seems almost inconceivable.

In more ways than one the virtual world has crossed over into reality. An actual PC is no longer needed to surf the web. Mobile phones are not only capable of making calls or sending text messages. In more ways than one they have morphed into mini hand-held computers.

One of the essential industries of not only US society, but that of the rest of the world, which seems to be rapidly headed for a modern makeover is the taxi cab. They are not only are they headed for more technology-based spin, but seem to be completely drowned out by companies such as Uber and Lyft, who have seemed to take technology and convenience to brand new heights.

Are Uber and Lyft really the new norm when it comes to getting around? Our high speed at your fingertip's society, has made waiting sometimes 20 minutes to get anything done unbearable. With busy schedules comes the need for convenience of getting from point A to point B. The urgency to accomplish this is not only expected but essential in order to keep up with the rapidly changing times. Once again, companies have recognized this emerging demand and have marketed toward it.

Clearly waiting for taxi cabs to arrive in their standard 10-15-minute window can no longer make the cut. Along with that goes the staggering prices even a short ride can amount to. There's hardly anything positive to be said for the current state of transportation.

It seems that the almost instantaneous arrival times of transportation companies such as Uber and Lyft as well as their practically dirt cheap fares are a breath of fresh air. Finding a ride is as easy as pressing a few keys on a phone app.

Even though, access to the Internet is mandatory to summon a vehicle that is hardly an obstacle since Wi-Fi is practically accessible through most mobile phones. Once a driver is found it's usually advised to be ready to go right away since the arrival time can be as quick as two minutes.

Is the convenience worth the risk? One major difference between taxi cabs and these quicker/cheaper vehicles is the security that seems to be missing. A major difference is the unique identification numbers clearly visible in all cabs. If any problems do occur with a driver, a customer service number isn't that difficult to find since it's the same one that is used to call a cab.

Another obvious advantage to taxi cab is a sense of security. Drivers are operating vehicles monitored by the company they are employed under. Thus, they can further be trusted to indeed take riders exactly where they're supposed to go. Payments, for the most part, are secure as well. There is little to no danger of being charged twice since most patrons still prefer to pay with cash and even when that isn't the case all credit-card transactions are monitored by the main office.

Sadly, the same cannot be said for the vehicles utilized by Uber or Lyft. There is little no security for the riders. These trips tend to resemble a board at your own risk type of situation per say. The sense of awareness and trust is heightened since these drivers are independent business owners, leaving little to no overhead from the main company. You can also forget about getting a hold of any company representatives if problems with a driver were to arise. All communications is done through a message basis. Asking to speak to a real person is out of the question. In other words, you can forget about it.

Security when it comes to payments is a bit lax as well. Instances do occur when drivers charge riders even before they're picked up. In short, riders having any control is virtually non-existent.

Once again, the phrase you get what you pay for annoyingly repeats itself.

There's no getting away from the fact that in order to carry on with our everyday lives the need for transportation is a necessity no one can get away from. Will safety soon take a back seat to price and convenience? Or will companies such as Uber and Lyft be simply a craze that will ultimately fade out over time? I guess we'll just have to wait and see. However, with things rapidly evolving maybe we don't have to wait very to find out.